Developing Your Leadership Qualities [Final Part]
Hello buddies. We have looked at some of the necessary qualities that a leader should posses from our last episode, and the qualities that should be consolidated upon. It is true that leadership may be or may not be by choice, but imbibing these qualities is definitely by choice. Obviously, no one is born with an exclusive quality of being a leader, they are basically learnt by the person over time and through experiences. Here, we shall be wrapping up with some more qualities that are expected of a leader to have.
1. High emotional intelligence
As a leader, responsibility is placed on you to put your emotions under subjection and under your control. But much more than that, you should also try to come to terms with the influence that arises from the emotions of the people you interact with you. Obviously, your followers and your subordinates have emotions too, which you should put into consideration before you act. You will be surprised that a single wrong action from you might crack someone's emotions from within, so try to have control over your emotions.
Still on the emotional intelligence, as a leader, you should try to think rationally before you act, and try to avoid impulse actions, because they may be heavily beclouded by emotions and sentiments. Even when you have been upset or angered by your followers, you can just pause for a few moments or even take some steps back, so as not to take irrational actions or regrettable actions that may ultimately impact negatively on the organisation. You have to understand that each action you take, whether it is taken out of anger or not, has consequences.
2. Effective conflict resolution ability
In your organisation, there are bound to be conflict of ideas, perceptions, opinions, etc, that may even extrapolate to a full-blown conflict. At that moment, you have to bring in your conflict resolution acumen to diffuse the situation before it falls out of hand. When doing this, it is important to note that you should be professional about it and avoid taking sides, because it may become counterproductive. More so, you have to learn to focus more on the solution that you want to proffer and not on the existing problems.
When settling conflict among your team members or your followers, always try to be as neutral as possible and avoid appearing to be partisan, so as not to create further conflict. Try to also avoid trading the blame game or pointing accusing fingers, nor quick to find faults. One thing to also avoid is argument. Obviously, there are ways to press home your points without engaging in arguments with your followers. When, in the process of conflict resolution, you find out that you are the one at fault, or that the conflict is directly or remotely related to your actions or inactions, try to apologise and do it unconditionally. Believe me, apologizing does not make you less of a leader but it brings out more of your leadership abilities.
3. Honesty and trustworthiness
A good leader should be a person of their word. That is, your "yes" should stand and should mean a "yes" at all times, same with your "no." You should not say one thing and later come back to mean an entirely different thing. If you are not honest and if you cannot be trusted, then you are not worthy to be a leader. You may be faced with situations that may come to challenge your integrity, but you should maintain honesty at all times. Always remember that everyone, including your followers, are watching you.
If you are not honest, how will you correct your followers if they show dishonesty? The level of honesty and trustworthiness you want from others, you have to show it to them too. To make a good leader, you have to lead by example, and that includes in both your words and actions. If you are honest, it will show in your words and actions. If people remark you for honesty, they will not have problem supporting your leadership, and people will naturally be drawn towards you.
Thanks for reading
